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Into the ring rumbles a circus wagon painted with all symbols of Mercury.
On the platform of Mercury stands the ringmaster Le Bateleur at a table.
I am the God of intelligence and Magic even though I left my winged hat and boots back in Florence( a might too heavy been made of bronze you know) I am the first of all and I come to show you a new game.
Look at my table--before your very eyes a game of dominance and action luck and skill (and possibilities of a little winnings on the side) I call it the The Two Banks of The River (that will have them fooled for years) tho you players been erstwhile Christians would call it Virtues and Vices and the Luck of those pesky Planets (they show you the way mind you) So will Virtue win or will Vice win? Play the game and find out.

In comes the second wagon all Dressed up like Mars. The Emperor booms out. I am Mars of temporal Power and I suggest this game is a war and conquest contest- you will need discipline, but you should repress your hostility.
The game has an organized structure- just like me. On the platform of Mars sits the Virtue Charity and her Vice Indifference.( I used to be married to her-but she is a cold one- my other choice got she to a nunnery and is always harping on about good works and the like- love God and don't gamble etc etc) Back to the game......got it"?
Four people two teams each trying to outwit each other with a higher card. Not happy families...Tarot.

The third wagon to trundle in is Venus camouflaged as The Chariot. on it's platform is Faith and Apostacy (or infidelity if you do choose) Will this Lover choose Virtue over Vice or will faith in Luck hold out? Ever wondered why this lover is pantless? I am Venus...you're going to Love this game if you play your cards right.Choose carefully.

Upon the Moon wagon you can see this game has ebbs and flows. High tides and Lowe tides One time you ride like a king-next you are in the mud. Justice and Poverty ride upon this wheel of Fortune. Sometimes the poor stay poor and even with an army to help you may not win. That's not Justice now is it? The sword of fair play will keep you in the game.

In trundles the 'death star'. Saturn. Have a strong hand, take a risk, have staying power- do not be weak and irresselute you will lose! DO not cheat either. No looking at the opposition cards from an odd upside down way. Death to the game and Death to you - you will be banned from the pub.
That is another sort of Death to the working man.

Here comes Jupiter looking like a tower. Pride and overconfidence! so you have a system to win the game? Temperance and Wrath ride upon Jupiter. This a game of Balance and reasoned control...you can influence your partner by clever play and if your partner is not a bright as you-give even that person his due proportion -you cannot play alone and an win.Llusting after money will be you downfall- so will ignorance of the game.

Hope and Despair ride upon he Sun wagon. You need clear perception of what you are trying to achieve. The children on the Sun remind us of the twin nature of the game.

Now the game draws to an end. Have the Heavens above applauded you? Have you won the game? Is the world your oyster? Has Prudence prevailed or Folly? Folly or Foolishness can jump on any wagon and interrupt the flow- means nothing - Costs nothing gains no points- but a little foolishness can Be a fine thing in a game..So is an army of 56

Please read with laughter in your heart.

I dedicate this to Pen to whom the planets played a trick and Saturn ate his words.
Pen......He might wish he had eaten mine.
Lorredan

The Universe is full of magical things patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.
Eden Phillpotts

So now I have a rhythm. 8 triumph or circus carts. 7 Planets forming the basis for 7 Virtues and Vices
The Heavens above and the World below and a fool. Don't need to search for missing Prudence-do not need to rearrange the sequence. Each set of three cards falls neatly into place.......except I had a little insey winsey problem with Empress and Indifference......but then I remembered that Empress that those starving for bread masses emplored to- "let them eat cake!" The Vice against Charity or caritas. Indeed.
Now a major problem (excuse the pun) is why are not those Planets showing clearly they are Planets?
Jupiter is pretty clear.
Dem bones, Dem bones, dem dry bones......Saturn. Well that did not take long.

I have had some fun with this Unicorn..
Lorredan

The Universe is full of magical things patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.
Eden Phillpotts

A Monk of Brefeld in the 1370's said of some cards (I guess not Tarot) They "....to teach Noblemen the Rule of Life and instruct the common people the way of Labouring virtuously..."
You have to know what a Virtue is to labour Virtously.
Now in the High medieval days Humanists tried to reconcile disparate religious thought into one truth that was hidden in every tradition- be it Pagan Christian etc....
Everything had its opposite Heat Cold....up Down....Good Bad..
One way to do this was to take opposites with a third common center. Example being Mars and Venus had a child called Harmony. They believed the planets had influences both good and bad. Or the 'nature' of the planet could be used by mitigate between Good and Bad.........
So taking just one set of three.....you have
Papesse.....Empress........Emperor
Charity......Indifference... Mars
Contemplative....Passive.....Active

This can be applied to each planet in conjunction with the opposites of Virtue and Vice

Temperance.......Devil........Tower
Temperance.......Wrath.......Jupiter
Jupiter ...Reasoned anger? Or for cards the action of correct lightening strike?????The clever move.
That is how I came to see these cards in sequence.

~Lorredan

The Universe is full of magical things patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.
Eden Phillpotts